Mining Intelligence and News
Mexico

El Cubo - El Pinguico Operation

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Overview

Mine TypeUnderground
 Archived Information
Commodities
  • Gold
  • Silver
Mining Method
  • Resue mining
  • Mechanized Cut & Fill
Mine Life... Lock
SnapshotGuanajuato Silver operates the combined El Cubo and El Pingüico properties.

El Cubo is approximately 5 kilometers from El Pingüico. Both properties utilize El Cubo’s existing mill.

Guanajuato Silver is currently exploring, developing, and processing mineralized material from the El Cubo property and other sources. At El Pingüico, only material from the surface stockpile has been hauled to the El Cubo concentrator for processing.
Related AssetEl Cubo Complex

Owners

SourceSource
CompanyInterestOwnership
Guanajuato Silver Company, Ltd. 100 % Indirect
VanGold signed a binding LOI to acquire the El Cubo property on December 18, 2020, being in aggregate, a 100% interest in the El Cubo property. The purchase, upon completion, would include 49 mining concessions covering 6,995 hectares, surface lands totaling 1,196 hectares, the El Cubo Mill, and all buildings and other improvements. The El Pinguico property consists of two claims that have a combined 72 hectares of surface area. VanGold has title to the mining rights for the El Pinguico property through October 2029 for one of the claims and the mining rights through July 2030 for the other claim.

/June 9, 2021 / VanGold Mining Corp. (the "Company" or "VanGold") (TSXV:VGLD) (OTCQX:VGLDF) announces that reflective of the Company's new name, Guanajuato Silver Company Ltd. ("Guanajuato Silver"), at the market opening on Thursday June 10, 2021 the Company's shares will begin trading on the TSXV under the symbol GSVR and in the United States on the OTCQX market as GSVRF.

Contractors

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Deposit type

  • Epithermal
  • Vein / narrow vein

Summary:

The Guanajuato Mining District is a world-class, high-grade, silver-gold, epithermal vein system with low sulfidation and adularia-sericite alteration. It is historically a well-known, studied, and documented mining district.

El Cubo mineralization is typical of the classic high-grade silver-gold, banded epithermal vein deposits with low sulfidation mineralization characterized by adularia-sericite-silica alteration. Silver occurs in dark sulfide-rich bands within the veins with little mineralization but significant alteration minerals in the surrounding wall rocks. Significant silver and gold bearing metallic minerals include argentite or acanthite (Ag 2 S), electrum (native Au/Ag), ruby silver sulfosalt minerals, such as pyrargyrite (Ag 3 SbS 3 ) and polybasite [(Ag/Cu) 6 (Sb,As) 2 S 7 ][Ag 9 CuS 4 ]), naumannite (Ag 2 S), native silver (Ag), native gold (Au), and aguilarite (Ag 4 SeS). Other metallic minerals include pyrite (FeS 2 ), galena (PbS), sphalerite (ZnS), and chalcopyrite (CuFeS 2 ). The silver sulfosalts are commonly found at depth while native silver is generally supergene and found in oxidized areas. As typical of these type systems, galena, sphalerite, and chalcopyrite are found deeper in the vein zones.

The silver rich veins, such as Villalpando, contain quartz, adularia, pyrite, argentite (acanthite), naumannite, and native gold. Gold rich veins, such as San Nicolas, contain quartz, pyrite, minor chalcopyrite and sphalerite, electrum, and aguilarite.

There is significant mineralogical zonation in the vein system. The upper levels are argentite (acanthite) + adularia + pyrite + electrum + calcite + quartz and the lower levels are chalcopyrite + galena + sphalerite + adularia + quartz + argentite (acanthite).

The gold:silver ratio in the more gold-rich veins typically ranges from 1:15 to 1:30. The gold:silver ratio in the silver rich veins typically ranges from 1:60 to 1:150, and sometimes higher. The overall gold:silver ratio to date is 1:64. Metal zoning appears to be related, at least in part, to elevation. Ranges for gold:silver ratios at El Cubo vary from 1:10 to 1:20 in the upper mine levels, from 1:40 to 1:50 in the middle mine levels, and 1:100 to 1:150 at depth. These ratios could be of some importance in evaluating outcropping vein occurrences.

Low-sulfidation epithermal deposits in Mexico, such as El Cubo and El Pinguico, commonly have a well-defined, sub- horizontal zone where the hydrothermal fluids deposited gold and silver mineralization. Regionally, ore horizon thickness ranges from at least 300 m to greater than 500 m. High-grade ore occurs where the hydrothermal fluids boiled. Below the higher-grade silver gold mineralization, silver and gold values decrease but base metal values increase.

Above the boiling zone, veins sometimes disappear or can be reflected into something as simple as a calcite vein with barely anomalous silver values or a fracture with argillic to phyllic alteration. This commonly occurs when the geologic unit above the “boiling zone” host rock is unreactive due to its chemical or structural characteristics.

Phyllic alteration, as sericite and silicification, forms as haloes surrounding and adjacent to the silver-gold veins. Banding is due to periodic boiling events related to pressure releases during faulting of the brittle silicified host rocks. Amethyst is locally common, and calcite is commonly a late stage mineral.

Typical of this style of mineralization, economic concentrations of silver and gold occur in ore shoots distributed vertically and laterally between barren or weakly mineralized portions of the veins. Bonanza grades may occur at the site of vein intersections, such as the nearly perpendicular San Nicolas-Villalpando vein intersection. Other vein intersections of various named splays along the principal Villalpando vein also host bonanza silver-gold mineralization. Movement along the strike or dip direction of veins during the hydrothermal episodes causes wide sigmoidal breccia zones typified by pinch and swell mineralization.

At the Pinguico Mine the major vein consists of both silver and gold in crumbling sugary to white crystalline quartz and calcite veins, within brecciated rhyolitic rock, and as a replacement in the altered rhyolite. Mineralization consists of native gold and silver, polybasite, pyrargyrite, tetrahedrite, marcasite, sphalerite, galena, pyrite, and chalcopyrite.

Reserves

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Mining Methods

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Comminution

Crushers and Mills

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Processing

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Production

CommodityUnitsLOM
Gold koz 6,626
Silver koz 84
Silver Equivalent M oz 13
All production numbers are expressed as metal in concentrate.

Operational metrics

Metrics
Daily ore mining rate  ....  Subscribe
Daily processing capacity  ....  Subscribe
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Annual processing rate  ....  Subscribe
Ore tonnes mined, LOM  ....  Subscribe
Tonnes processed, LOM  ....  Subscribe
* According to 2021 study.

Production Costs

CommodityUnitsAverage
Assumed price Silver USD  ....  Subscribe
Assumed price Gold USD  ....  Subscribe
* According to 2021 study / presentation.

Operating Costs

Currency2021
Processing costs ($/t milled) USD  ....  Subscribe
G&A ($/t milled) USD  ....  Subscribe
Total operating costs ($/t milled) USD  ....  Subscribe
* According to 2021 study.

Project Costs

MetricsUnitsLOM Total
Initial CapEx $M USD  ......  Subscribe
Sustaining CapEx $M USD  ......  Subscribe
Total CapEx $M USD  ......  Subscribe
UG OpEx $M USD  ......  Subscribe
Processing OpEx $M USD 25.4
G&A costs $M USD 23.6
Total OpEx $M USD  ......  Subscribe
Mining Taxes $M USD  ......  Subscribe
Income Taxes $M USD  ......  Subscribe
Royalty payments $M USD  ......  Subscribe
Gross revenue (LOM) $M USD  ......  Subscribe
Net revenue (LOM) $M USD  ......  Subscribe
EBITDA (LOM) $M USD  ......  Subscribe
Net Income (LOM) $M USD  ......  Subscribe
After-tax Cash Flow (LOM) $M USD  ......  Subscribe
After-tax NPV @ 5% $M USD  ......  Subscribe
After-tax NPV @ 10% $M USD  ......  Subscribe
After-tax NPV @ 8% $M USD  ......  Subscribe
After-tax IRR, %  ......  Subscribe
After-tax payback period, years  ......  Subscribe

Required Heavy Mobile Equipment

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Personnel

Mine Management

Job TitleNameProfileRef. Date
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Total WorkforceYear
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Aerial view:

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